We were quite happy when our good friends Aniko and Philippe got in touch some time ago about meeting up somewhere in France for a weekend, during their holiday road trip around France. After some deliberation, we agreed upon Lyon - one of the great cities of France, conveniently located between Nice and Paris (where Philippe and Aniko live). We've been to Lyon a couple of times, but haven't really properly visited the place, so we quite looked forward to spending a weekend there.
We arrived just in time for dinner, after a surprisingly trouble-free trip from Nice (traffic can be quite bad along the Rhone valley leading up to Lyon). And what better place to have dinner in than a proper Lyon "bouchon" - a traditional little Lyonnais eatery, serving things that sound rather disgusting on paper at least, usually involving intestines from various animals. We chose a rather promisingly named place called Le Carnivore - and at least the cozy deco more than lived up to expectations. The food was rather Lyonnais as well - I decided to really go all the way and start with some bone marrow, folllowed by that famous stinky sausage known as Andoillette (which is actually strictly speaking a speciality from Troyes, unless I am mistaken...). All in all, a nice little introduction to Lyon then! Me and Philippe rounded off the evening with a couple of beers in a bar near the hotel...
The next morning, we decided to head down to Vieux Lyon, in spite of the ominously grey sky. Vieux Lyon is a rather charming place, with windy roads, loads on Bouchons (many looking rather touristy...). My favourite bit of Vieux Lyon are the Traboules, sort of passages that cross building courtyards, allowing quick access form one street to another. Heading through these "secret passages", one feels almost like an explorer or adventurer...
After a nice little walk around this charming part of time, we decided to take the funicular up to Fourviere, a hill overlooking the old town and the Saone river. This hilltop is famous for its Roman ruins (which we didn't have time to visit this time around, unfortunately), and the Notre-Dame de Fourvière, an impressive church stunningly located at the top of the hill. The views towards Lyon are, needless to say, stunning. Pity about the fog... The walk down back to old Lyon was pretty nice too...
By now our stomachs were grumbling, so we decided to head back across the Saone river to the modern part of town to get something to eat. We eventually ended up in a great little bistro called Le Potager des Halles. We had a meal that I can only describe as stunning - everything was sport on: the food, the prices, the decor, and the cheeky service... Seems that Lyon's reputation as a culinary hotspot is well deserved!
After lunch, we continued exploring charming Lyon, starting with the rather stunning Place des Terreaux and the modern opera, and heading up-hill to trendy Croix-Rousse. Croix-Rousse used to be a working-class neighbourhood, but these days, it's one of the hippest places in town. It's got a nice little edge to it, reminds me a bit about some parts of San Francisco (not just because it's similarly hilly...), with its chic little shops and fancy cafes. And what's best, there are plenty of traboules to explore ;-)
After a couple of hours of exploration and walking around, we headed downhill back towards our hotel, stopping by at a nearby bar where we had rendez-vous for apero with Mathilde's friend Karine. She ended up joining us for dinner as well (and luckily ordered a nice little restaurant for us as well - since I had managed to book a Japanese sushi place rather than a Lyonnais Bouchon for the evening!).
Dinner was excellent again, similar to lunch, pretty much confirming our faith in the local cuisine. And great to get a bit more time to catch up with Karine! We were treated to some nice night-time views across the Rhone river on the way back to the hotel as well, as an added treat. Me and Philippe finished off the evening with a couple of pints at an Irish pub in the old town...
The next day, we very lucky enough to be blessed with plentiful sunshine. We decided to make the best of it and walk along the Rhone river up to the Cite International. The walk was rather stunning - they've really done a good job at redeveloping the riverside - dedicating it to nature. The Cite International is a pretty cool place as well. It's a kind of big appartment complex, completemented by art galleries, shops and restaurants, stunningly designed by Renzo Piano. Me and Philippe made fools of our selves, climbing on top of the art works on display (only afterwards spotting the "do not touch" signs). Some people never grow up, eh ? ;-)
After the cite we headed into the nearby Parc de la tete de l'Or, a lovely place to spend a sunny day like today. There's even a zoo there - great opportunity for me to put my telephoto lens to good use on the monkeys and other animals on display. We ended up having a rather disappointing lunch at the Place des Terreux in what can only be described as a tourist trap. During the meal, it started pouring raining cats and dogs, as the English would say, surely a sign that it was time to leave Lyon. So we did, after saying our goodbyes to Philippe and Aniko.
All in all, we'd had a fantastic weekend in Lyon. It hadn't made much of an impression on me on the previous short visits, but this visit really left it's mark. I would happily go back - especially as the cuisine was every bit as good as I expected as well! ;-)
We arrived just in time for dinner, after a surprisingly trouble-free trip from Nice (traffic can be quite bad along the Rhone valley leading up to Lyon). And what better place to have dinner in than a proper Lyon "bouchon" - a traditional little Lyonnais eatery, serving things that sound rather disgusting on paper at least, usually involving intestines from various animals. We chose a rather promisingly named place called Le Carnivore - and at least the cozy deco more than lived up to expectations. The food was rather Lyonnais as well - I decided to really go all the way and start with some bone marrow, folllowed by that famous stinky sausage known as Andoillette (which is actually strictly speaking a speciality from Troyes, unless I am mistaken...). All in all, a nice little introduction to Lyon then! Me and Philippe rounded off the evening with a couple of beers in a bar near the hotel...
The next morning, we decided to head down to Vieux Lyon, in spite of the ominously grey sky. Vieux Lyon is a rather charming place, with windy roads, loads on Bouchons (many looking rather touristy...). My favourite bit of Vieux Lyon are the Traboules, sort of passages that cross building courtyards, allowing quick access form one street to another. Heading through these "secret passages", one feels almost like an explorer or adventurer...
After a nice little walk around this charming part of time, we decided to take the funicular up to Fourviere, a hill overlooking the old town and the Saone river. This hilltop is famous for its Roman ruins (which we didn't have time to visit this time around, unfortunately), and the Notre-Dame de Fourvière, an impressive church stunningly located at the top of the hill. The views towards Lyon are, needless to say, stunning. Pity about the fog... The walk down back to old Lyon was pretty nice too...
By now our stomachs were grumbling, so we decided to head back across the Saone river to the modern part of town to get something to eat. We eventually ended up in a great little bistro called Le Potager des Halles. We had a meal that I can only describe as stunning - everything was sport on: the food, the prices, the decor, and the cheeky service... Seems that Lyon's reputation as a culinary hotspot is well deserved!
After lunch, we continued exploring charming Lyon, starting with the rather stunning Place des Terreaux and the modern opera, and heading up-hill to trendy Croix-Rousse. Croix-Rousse used to be a working-class neighbourhood, but these days, it's one of the hippest places in town. It's got a nice little edge to it, reminds me a bit about some parts of San Francisco (not just because it's similarly hilly...), with its chic little shops and fancy cafes. And what's best, there are plenty of traboules to explore ;-)
Dinner was excellent again, similar to lunch, pretty much confirming our faith in the local cuisine. And great to get a bit more time to catch up with Karine! We were treated to some nice night-time views across the Rhone river on the way back to the hotel as well, as an added treat. Me and Philippe finished off the evening with a couple of pints at an Irish pub in the old town...
All in all, we'd had a fantastic weekend in Lyon. It hadn't made much of an impression on me on the previous short visits, but this visit really left it's mark. I would happily go back - especially as the cuisine was every bit as good as I expected as well! ;-)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment